Increasing awareness of HRT with the help of celebrities has helped more women seek treatment
(Picture: PA)A lack of awareness and support around menopause is costing London’s economy £2 billion, new research reveals.
A team of researchers at Balance, a British menopause support app, has calculated the staggering cost on the capital’s economy using existing statistics from the Fawcett Society and Office for National Statistics (ONS).
It comes after a report given to MPs on Wednesday called for a free menopause check-up for women when they turn 45 and for better menopause training among doctors.
The Menopause All-Party Parliamentary Group report, published after a year-long inquiry, also suggested scrapping HRT prescription charges in England in line with the other nations of the UK.
Balance researchers found that 1.9 million women over the age of 40 who work in London have an average salary of £34,424.
Also one in 10 women who were employed during menopause left their job due to symptoms, according to the Fawcett Society. More than a quarter took time off, of which 22 percent took one month or more.
This has a big economic impact, balance suggested.
To determine the cost of hiring new workers, Balance used ONS stats which confirm the cost of recruitment and training for UK employers is £8,074. It also added an additional productivity cost, assuming for the first six months of a job new workers are only 70 percent at productivity capacity, and an SSP day rate.
That’s how researchers came to the conclusion that a lack of awareness and support around menopause is costing London £2 billion, balance said.
“Women over 50 are the fastest growing segment of the workforce in the UK, and research demonstrates an evident correlation between untreated and undiagnosed menopause symptoms with experience at work and career progression, which in turn has a huge financial impact on companies – and on the UK economy as a whole,” spokesperson Gaele Lalahy said.
Glassdoor career trends expert Jill Cotton said menopause is still seen as a taboo topic in many workplaces, creating a lack of transparency.
“One in 10 people in the UK workforce is of menopausal age, but each person’s experience of menopause will be individual. Therefore, companies should offer a range of menopausal support to empower employees to tailor the offer to their specific needs.
“Being transparent and opening conversations around menopause or more widely about wellbeing and mental health can feel hard. But to attract and retain talent, it is vital companies take this step.”
In July, the women and equalities committee of MPs called for a large-scale trial of menopause leave to be introduced.
Conservative MP Caroline Nokes, said menopause should become a “protected characteristic” under the Equalities Act, like pregnancy.
The committee called on the Government to appoint a “menopause ambassador” and develop a leave scheme with a large public sector employer “with a strong public profile”.
